Terry fabrics are manufactured for several different end uses, including as towels, bathrobes, blankets, cleaning products, carpets and the like. Terry fabrics are considered advantageous in view of the fast drying, softness, ability to pick up particles, and ability to absorb moisture.
Terry fabrics typically comprise a woven ground fabric comprising a plurality of substantially parallel ground warp yarns and a plurality of substantially parallel ground weft yarns (or picks)—wherein the plurality of ground weft yarns intersect the plurality of ground warp yarns substantially perpendicularly. Additionally, a plurality of pile warp yarns are interwoven into the ground fabric in a direction substantially parallel to the ground warp yarns—and the pile weave forms a plurality of pile loops or terry loops above and below the woven ground fabric.
Ground warp yarns are interwoven with ground weft yarns at a relatively high tension and forms the base or substrate of the terry fabric. The pile warp yarns are interwoven at a lower tension and are advanced or “let off” from the loom beam at a higher rate than the ground warp yarns. During weaving, a series of adjacent ground weft yarns are subjected to a partial beat-up or “loose beat-up”, where the weft yarn(s) may be pushed partially together using a comb (or “reed”) or where the fell of the cloth is moved forward to enable a partial beat-up, while the pile warp yarns are permitted to “float” over two or more adjacent ground weft yarns. On an ensuing ground weft yarn (at the conclusion of a weaving repeat), the previously partially beat up ground weft yarns as well as the ensuing ground weft yarn are subjected to a “fast beat up”, where all ground weft yarns are pushed fully up to the fell of the woven fabric—resulting in the floating pile threads forming loops that extend away from the ground substrate. A common terry pattern comprises a 3 pick sequence, wherein pile loops are interwoven into the ground fabric in a repeating pattern such that pile loops are formed using (and repeated every) 3 ground weft yarns. Less commonly known are 4, 5, 6 and 7 pick sequences—where interweaving a pile yarn into the ground fabric comprises repeating a pile loop every 4, 5, 6, or 7 ground weft yarns.
FIGS. 1 and 2 respectively provide transverse and perspective views of a terry weave sequence 100 comprising a 3 pick sequence. Terry weave sequence 100 comprises a pair of ground warp yarns 102a and 102b interwoven with a plurality of ground weft yarns in a repeating sequence such that first and second ground weft yarns 104a and 104b are placed within a first shed 106a formed by the pair of ground warp yarns, and a third ground weft yarn 104c is placed within a second shed 106b formed by the pair of ground warp yarns. Said repeating sequence forms a ground fabric on ground substrate terry weave sequence 100 additionally comprises pile yarns 108a and 108b wherein each of said pile yarns are interwoven into the ground substrate in a sequence that repeats every 3 ground weft yarns. The 3 pick sequence can be observed in case of pile loop 110a which is formed over the sequence of ground weft yarns 104a, 104b and 104c, and in case of pile loop 110b which is also formed over the sequence of ground weft yarns 104a, 104b and 104c. It would be understood from FIGS. 1 and 2 that in forming pile loop 110a, pile yarn 108a passes between ground weft yarns 104a and 104b and thereafter forms a pile loop over ground weft yarns 104b and 104c (i.e. on the top surface/face surface of the ground substrate), before the next 3 pick sequence is commenced. Likewise, in forming pile loop 110b, pile yarn 108b passes between ground weft yarns 104a and 104b and thereafter forms a pile loop over ground weft yarns 104b and 104c (i.e. on the bottom surface/back surface of the ground substrate), before the next 3 pick sequence is commenced.
While prior art weave sequences have been widely used in the past, it is desired to increase pick density of terry fabrics beyond the pick densities permitted by prior art weave sequences, as well as to improve pull resistance, absorbency, softness and uniformity of texture of the terry fabrics.